Stephanie Thurow

This book came out right about the time my husband had a job offer in Minnesota and I began hunting down social media accounts about gardening. At the time, maple syrup season was beginning, and as a maple syrup-lover, I was fascinated. I found out about this new release book and knew it'd have lots of helpful info for me as I made the bold leap from gardening in zone 9 to 4b.

What I love about this book is that it's approachable for gardeners of all levels, with various sizes of property. It'd help someone do a single bed or convert their whole yard. In my new house, I have about an acre in town, so I have a lot of terrain to work with! The gardening advice is great, full of info I'll need to reference as 2024, and future years, start. I'll need to consider starting seeds inside and how I want to rework things outside as the ground thaws. The section on raising chickens was interesting, but not something I want to delve into. The last major section, though, is about making maple syrup. I happen to have one big maple tree in my yard. The authors outline the supplies needed and many options around the process, such as how to do the initial boil-down stage outside… (mais)

I have been canning things for more years than I care to discuss but fermenting is relatively new to me. Sauerkraut is about the extent of my experience and I do that in a whomping big crock. That is what I like so much about this cookbook – it will allow me to experiment with small batches so that if I mess up I’m not doing it with a big whomping crock of food.

The book opens with an overview of both processes and the equipment you need for each. They are written in a simple way that doesn’t make either intimidating. The book only delves into water bath canning, not pressure canning so keep that in mind. It deals with pickles, jams and relishes.

The recipes follow by season starting with Spring. Options are given for both the fruits and vegetables that are commonly available at the time of year. Of course depending upon where you live, your season might be bit different. For example, for most people strawberry season comes in April or May but I don’t see my berries until June.

The recipes are well written and easy to follow. You are offered recipes for either method for each fruit or vegetable. I’m interested in trying several for fermenting such as cranberries in honey, and green tomato salsa.

I am glad I have added this cookbook to my library for dealing with the harvest. I know it will give me new ideas for all of the produce the hubby brings me.… (mais)